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lorei-writes · 5 years ago

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Dragon’s Treasure

Masamune x MC Some Fluff, Some Angst Family AU Post Canon (~10 years)

Summary: Nobunaga invites his allies to come to the Azuchi castle. As the invitation is impossible to reject, Masamune travels there with his wife and children. However, nobody could have foreseen what happened during the banquet.

Some fluff, some angst. @nyashalynn wanted some, so I delivered. For further notes, read under the cut.

Word estimate: 2.5k

Content Warnings: poisoning, harm to children, food mention

Masamune’s children are called Iroha and Torakikumaru (the boy changes his name to Tadamune later in life, after the coming of age ceremony). Nobunaga’s son name is Kanpachi. Hideyoshi’s daughter is named Sadako. Ieyasu’s son - Takechiyo. ( I tried to use the historical childhood names). The story takes place roughly 10 years after the events of the game.

I refer to MC as either the wife, the princess or the mother, as I didn’t really want to give her a name nor call her MC.

I’ll probably die out of embarrassment for posting it, but I’ll do that tomorrow.

As the sun began to set, the Azuchi castle flickered on the horizon, bringing relief upon Masamune Date and his wife, the beloved princess adopted by the Oda clan. The journey seemed to have exhausted them more than they could have expected, with their daughter, Iroha, taking after her father more and more each day. The children, both wild and lively, appeared to be ready to conquer the entire world, despite their parents’ efforts to keep them safe. From Torakikumaru hijacking Masamune’s horse during a break, to Iroha running off into the woods at night, just to lead the maid assigned to her astray and be later found hiding by her mother, the days on the road were full of minor and major adventures, provided exclusively by the little troublemakers. Being the only ones able to tame the little cubs, the lord of Oshu and his beloved found themselves craving sleep more than anything else. However, they reckoned Nobunaga’s calls couldn’t be ignored any longer and as such, considered his invitation unrejectable.

As they neared the castle gates, the children awoke in the carriage and peaked out of it curiously. “Papa, are we there yet?” Torakikumaru inquired, as Iroha rubbed her eyes eagerly, trying to shake away any remaining sleepiness. “ Yes. And it seems uncle Hideyoshi and uncle Mitsuhide are waiting for us at the gate,” Masamune answered. Soon, they halted their horses and descended, handing the reins over to the servants ready to take care of the animals. “Had you not sent that messenger a couple of days ago, Nobunaga would be scheming to take over Oshu now,” Hideyoshi complained, his lips turning into otherwise rather warm smile. “Oh, did he miss us that much? The last time I’ve heard from him, he had his hands full with certain konpeito thief,” Masamune joked, warding off the tiredness. “ Little lord Kanpachi did learn his lesson, I presume, as I’ve woken up to him still being scolded by a certain someone,” scoffed Mitsuhide. He looked down, as something tugged on his robe, only to find Iroha. He lifted the girl into the air. “ Remind me, little mouse, how old are you? Five already? You grew so much since our last visit to Aoba.” “I’m four, silly uncle.” Mitsuhide handed the girl to her mother, shaking his head in theatrical disbelief. “ To think, the tiger’s cub would start to bite so soon,” he added, causing Iroha to giggle.

With help from Hideyoshi, the servants managed to escort the children to the Date manor, while their parents went to greet Nobunaga. “You look rather…” Oda started, just to be cut off by the princess: “ Sleep deprived? Can’t say we slept much in past two weeks.” “ This better be worth it, Nobunaga. Iroha may fancy taking over your land if she explores by herself any more forests at night. What’s the exact reason behind that invitation?” Masamune chuckled. “The unification’s almost complete. I’ll be hosting a banquet to celebrate our recently formed alliances. We may be heading into our final battles soon, so I presume you’d want to see your friends this time.” “ You do realise you’ve called for a child rebellion by demanding everybody to come with their family, do you?” princess inquired jokingly. “ I do and I plan to benefit from it greatly, Fireball.” With that, they parted their ways and came to rest at their quarters.

The servants at Azuchi castle couldn’t have been prepared for a sudden influx of not only adult guests, but also rowdy little humans. However, the temperature was only about to rise on the very day of the banquet, as somebody stole konpeito Hideyoshi had hidden. Little did the warlord realise, the culprit wasn’t his daughter, Sadako, nor Kanpachi, but Ieyasu’s son – Takechiyo. With the girl acting as a diversion, he successfully sneaked past his father and delivered the sweets to Torakikumaru. The boy orchestrated the plan and as such, wanted to be the one to bring them to his uncle. “ My lord, I completed the mission you’ve tasked me with,” he said, upon entering Nobunaga’s chamber. “ As expected, you did splendidly. I presume the friendship between our clans will flourish. However, I must ask you, is Hideyoshi still unaware of our plan?” “ He is and shall be for much longer, as he had underestimated his enemy gravely,” claimed the future lord. Yet, he broke the act just as soon, as he asked, his eyes shining brightly with hope: “ Uncle, can I have some too? You do reward your vassals, don’t you?” To that, Nobunaga could only laugh, inviting the boy to feast on the sweets as well.

A few hours later the children were gathered in one wing of the Azuchi castle, where servants could watch them closely. Allies flooded the main hall, their eager voices filling the air. Many new faces appeared – some belonged to the warlords’ spouses, some to recently sworn vassals and some to the heads of the few clans remaining out of any coalition. However, the initially foreign atmosphere changed quickly, becoming reminiscent more of what the feasts looked like all those years ago. Mitsuhide still tried to switch Masamune’s water for alcohol, Ieyasu bickered with Mitsunari, Hideyoshi kept attempting to kill anybody who appeared to be even mildly unfavorable towards Nobunaga with his gaze alone. The lord of Oshu caught himself wondering, whether the wormhole would come in three months, only to remind himself this conversation was long over – his princess had chosen to stay by his side, to become the lady of his entire domain and to share his sorrows with him. Seven years had passed since she bore him a heir, but more importantly – a son. Glad to be alive and to have met his lass, he joked with his friends and teased his wife, stealing a couple of short kisses from her lips here and there.

The heads turned towards the sliding door, as a maid opened them frantically and ran towards her lord. She bowed on the floor and spoke, gasping for breath: “ Toraki…kumaru… He… He collapsed. Suddenly… He is escorted… Manor..”. Masamune and princess rose instantly, soon leaving the jovial atmosphere behind them. As they rushed through the corridors, his wife said: “ You go. I’ll fetch Iroha.” He didn’t have time to argue, as they both picked up their pace.

He arrived just as the guards stepped outside Torakikumaru’s room. Without a word, he went inside. His son was shaking violently. His face was twisted into a mask of terror, as he could neither speak nor take any control of his body. The pupils of his eyes were dilated enough to consume almost the entirety of his irises, making the boy seem almost inhuman. Masamune moved instinctively, sitting on the floor to hold the child firmly against himself. “ Call for Ieyasu!” the lord of the manor yelled, then turning all of his attention to his son. “ It’s going to be all right. Hang in there,” he claimed reassuringly, trying to drive away at least some of the fear. “ I know it’s scary, but it will be okay. I am here. Mama went for Iroha. She’ll be here in no time. You just have to endure it a bit longer.”

Ieyasu was the first to come, as he rushed to the Date manor right after hearing the details of the event from the maid. He stormed into the chamber, just to witness as the child stopped shaking and went limp in his father’s arms. Masamune’s eye widened in fear. He lowered Torakikumaru onto a futon. Before he could look for any signs of life, Ieyasu was onto it. In less than a minute, he said: “He’s alive.” The head of the Date felt the waves of such an intense relief wash over him for the first time in years. “ Masamune. What symptoms has he shown up until now?” “ Convulsions. Wide pupils. Couldn’t speak,” he replied, his throat surprisingly dry. “Does it ring a bell for you?” Ieyasu remained silent for a while, attempting to match the gathered information to any kind of poisoning he knew of. He kept his gaze low and shook his head, just as the princess entered the room. She was carrying crying Iroha in her arms, trying to soothe the girl’s confusion and fear with rubbing her back and soft kisses pressed to her temple. The princess kept the tears from escaping her eyes. “His alive,” claimed Masamune. As his wife sat on the other side of Torakikumaru’s futon, they eyes met. She nodded and spoke: “ Iroha, listen. I know it is really scary. I know you feel lost and it seems dangerous. We love you and will protect you. But now we need you to stay for a couple of days with one of your uncles.” “ But mama, I don’t wanna go. They didn’t let me be with Tora. I don’t wanna go!” she screamed, her little hands grasping at her mother’s kimono tightly “I know, my little kitty, but we really need to keep you safe. I promise, you’ll see Tora soon and I’ll make you your favorite mochi to eat together. We need you to stay with one of your uncles for a couple of days,” Masamune added, gently patting her hair.

By the time Mitsuhide arrived with Hideyoshi and Mitsunari, Iroha was only sobbing quietly, exhausted from all the tears she had shed. Mitsunari could hardly bear seeing such a young child in so much pain, so as soon as he learnt of her parents’ intentions, he crouched next to her and said softly: “Little lady Iroha, I’ll take you to lord Hideyoshi’s manor, okay? I’ll see to it you share the room with Sadako and I’ll tell you both as many bedtime stories as you want today.” She looked up for a second, without saying a word. “Okay,” Iroha mustered, standing up. She left, holding Mitsunari’s hand. Without the girl in the earshot, Hideyoshi spoke: “ Who could have poisoned him?” “ I can’t recall the Date having a strife with any of the present clans,” Masamune answered, clenching his fists. “I presume it’s best I seek the insight of my spies then. At least until Nobunaga is still hosting his dear guests,” Mitsuhide added, before turning around and leaving the manor. Ieyasu rose to his feet. “ I’ll have the medicine delivered. Assign somebody to be with him at all times. Make him drink once he wakes up.” Lord Tokugawa and lord Toyotomi left.

The following days were filled with fearful anticipation. The convulsions returned once, yet he didn’t regain consciousness a single time. Torakikumaru’s form seemed to shrink, as his body struggled to fight the poison. None of the treatments proposed by Ieyasu gave any signs of success, leaving the family helpless. The warlord usually came to visit afer the princess had already fallen asleep, Masamune watching over their son for the night. “Any new ideas?” one-eyed dragon asked, knowing the answer all to well. “ Yes, but nothing for Torakikumaru. Mitsuhide has came across some clues,” he started dryly, averting his eyes from the people in the room. “ The poison doesn’t come from here. It’s uncertain whether there’s even any antidote for it. We won’t find it in time.” Masamune looked at his friend, not daring to say anything. It was unusual for Ieyasu to be this sincere. “ Unless he wakes up on his own in the next couple of days, he won’t make it,” the Tokugawa added. He stormed out of the room, without waiting for the answer. In a way – he was right, as there was none to begin with.

For the next two days, Masamune couldn’t sleep during the day, even despite staying up all night. With princess, he kept being by Torakikumaru’s side, desperately awaiting his awakening. Yet it didn’t happen. “ If he doesn’t wake up, how will we explain it to Iroha?” the princess asked, her eyes red from tears. Masamune’s chest tightened, as he saw just how exhausted she was, her eyes dull and full of inexpressible sorrow. “ I don’t think anything we can say will make it any easier,” he confessed. “ Why would anybody do that to a child?” his wife’s voice threatened to break. “ Usually, I’d say it’s either for revenge or to invite us to war. Maybe somebody wants to start an internal dispute within the Date… But this time, I don’t know either, kitten. It’s cruel and it hurts,” he admitted.

Masamune never thought he’d perceive the political matters through the lenses of his personal afflictions. He remembered the times before he came to understand his beloved – how easy it was for him to rationalise the cruel, war-spoiled and merciless world they lived in. He could brush off his mother trying to poison him, yet seeing the very same thing happen to Torakikumaru enraged him. He felt weak, for ever allowing that to happen, for not being able to stop the person who threatened to harm his family in their tracks. Another subject that reappeared in Masamune’s thoughts whenever he was awake was Iroha. Neither of them had seen her since Mitsunari left with her. Giving anybody any clue about her whereabouts was too dangerous… Though, there was another reason just as well. How could they face their cub, all too well knowing they’d had to lie to her? He certainly didn’t want to bring any more hope into those young, curious eyes – as he might very well be the one to shatter it and replace it with sorrow and fear.

Masamune, lost in his thoughts, didn’t notice when the day turned into night. His eyes stung, so he moved his hand to rub at them. His wife had already fallen asleep from the exhaustion, still in her kimono. “Papa?” a weak voice came from the darkness. “I’m right here,” the lord of Oshu answered, frantically lighting the lantern. Torakikumaru was awake, his eyes wide open. “ What happened? I don’t remember much.” Masamune felt his eyes watering, as he took his son and positioned him in his lap, only to hug him tightly . “ Somebody dared to hurt you. You don’t have to be afraid anymore. They’ve called the wrath of the dragon upon themselves and will soon regret it with the entirety of their beings.”

Lord Date didn’t realise when his wife wake up or when she found her way to them. He could only feel the warmth of her embrace and see her eyes shed yet another tears, this time tainted with the shades of joy.

The messengers were sent out.

#masamune date #ikesen masamune #ikemen sengoku #ikesen nobunaga #masamune x mc #my ff #please forgive me typos #i rely on muscle memory when writing and it only really works on paper

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ivemetyouathousandways · 5 years ago

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Second chance at the top of the world

Saturday morning - 6: 15 am - Skibbuveien 32-36

Wind was chilly this morning but to my sour disappointment, it failed miserably to whisper some enchanting soothing remedy to the misery of my burning heart. I had left Sven with a friendly hug yesterday morning, his soft cologne haunting me throughout the day, which I had spent under the heavy duvet in my room at the guest house, plagued with the unavoidable pain of me fucking up. I had thought of going back to the rocks and from there to his house, I had remembered the easy path we had taken. I remembered the house number. But it would have been awkward and silly and stupid and... Would it, though?

"Hva er det med deg? Begravet du mannen din?”

“He’s asking what’s wrong with you - have you buried your husband?” The wife translated.

I tried to smile. Maybe? But... Was there even something to justify all this emotional bullshit bigotry or was it all in my head?

"I'm fine." I assured them. "Sometimes, I enjoy peace and quiet." I forked a juicy piece of meat. "I don't understand those tourists who spend all day outside. My body may be young but my mind is at least ninety years old and needs peace and quiet."

Magnus laughed and commented that it was nonsense. I should be out there enjoying local youth and wild adventures to be told later at dinner parties, not inside with two old nondescript oldies going over stamp collections and old photos.

“And sheep head. You and your soul need sheep head.” He added.

But I loved my time with my hosts. I loved their adorable couple life, their old style home from the previous century full of odd trinkets, their ways, their chitter-chatter in Norwegian, completely forgetting that I was there, on the couch of their living room, snug like a bug in a heavy warm blanket watching the evening news of which I didn’t understand much but the main gist of.

The woman, Vilde, did inquire more intimately later that night, when we found ourselves alone in front of the dying fire, what was really up with me and I briefly summed up the encounter with Sven. I guess, there is nothing like an Empress to inspire a young Queen of Swords to actually open up and set afoot on the the teary shores of an emotional relief.

"I'm dumb. That's the root of the problem." I mumbled.

"You have been hurt one too many time so now you run away before you even know the color of their socks."

I snort laughed at her expression. But she was right.

"But in the process of my stupid thick shield, I have hurt him, and I just feel so bad about it. He didn't need that, right now."

Vilde hugged me tight.

I finally managed to fall asleep around two in the morning, after an extended "quick chat" with Magnus about his own father's love tribulations. Olav was the light house keeper from the tender age of nineteen to his death. A role and duty he held to sacred heights, somewhat disregarding an otherwise devoted loving wife and kids. Love tribulations which were of incendiary repercussions when it was let to be known that he had more than a few love interests and mistresses around the next villages and islands over. His wife had kept a cool face to save the family name but she died of broken heart.

"Not even humiliation” Magnus insisted, like a fairy tale troll cautioning the wandering hero “broken heart.” He paused to let that sink in. “If you like that poor bastard, go back to his house, take him to his bed and settle things down!"

I mean, yeah, sure,that's an easy way to go about it.

Vilde laughed, shook her head and made me promise not to follow her husband's directives. I escaped the discussion by asking if I could visit said lighthouse, to which, after a bit of an back and forth in Norwegian, to spare my touristy ears of colloquial slang, I was promised to be granted the set of keys and directions first thing in the morning, which normally would have meant around 8 am, but I pleaded my touristy case and epic sunrise photos to be taken, moment to be lived, and I got both instructions and keys before we all called it a night.

And so here I was, on this cool Septemberian Saturday morning, walking in the dusky darkness en route to Oksøy Lighthouse.

And there he appeared, smack in front of me, his shoes touching my sneakers. I could have seen him but I have had the brilliant selfish indulgence of being touristically absorbed in my phone screen, journaling as much as I could of the previous nights events in minute details, capturing and framing fleeting emotions.

“God morgen Illy”

“Jó reggelt Sven.”

I smiled. So we had a thing now, with our respective mother tongues.

"Where are you headed to?"

"The lighthouse over at Oksøy."

"It's an abandoned location. And you need a ferry to get there. Or a boat."

I snickered and fetched the ring of keys from my pocket.

He looked at me with a blank face.

"I'm renting a room over at Flekkeroy Inn and it so appears that the owner is the youngest son of the previous lighthouse keeper."

I pocketed the keys and looked at his boots. Had he gone to the rocks?

"Want to tag along?"

If I could of, I would have smacked myself behind the head. Way to go Illy!

Please accept. Please don't say no. Please say yes.

“Do you know how to operate a motorboat ?” He asked concerned.

“No... but Magnus explained me...”

“And you’ll end up in China.”

“Is that all the faith you have in my abilities?” I asked a little offended.

“Yes.” He smiled proud and smug.

And on that note, and just like that, his arm found it’s way around my shoulders and his steps joined mine.

6:44 am

If it was chilly on land, it was bloody freezing up here on top of the world and the warm layered outfit I had planned was no match against the biting cold. And then there was the deafening constant roar of the waves breaking against the rocky shores. And there was Sven, who for the better part of an excruciating wait for the sun to deign peek through the dark clouds lazily loitering on the horizon line, had gallantly imposed his barricading warmth against aforementioned cold and wind, his mutton doubled leather jacket opened and both arms solidly cloaked around me.

“What is your obsession with sunrises ?” He asked just as the sun finally shot his first ray, coloring the sky from a dark vine purple to a slightly warmer red stained eggplant to finally lightening up to boysenberry and settling for vibrant violet purples where the first shy hints of watermelon and punch pinks would shyly peek through.

“Isn’t this absolutely ... magnificent though?” I whispered in awe “Isn’t this magic?”

I let the sky change faces, slowly, like a painter adding layers of color; salmon pink fading to lemonade, the farther corners from navy berry blue to azure, to lapis and softly settling for pale sky. The sun’s first reflections on the ocean of deep crimson cherry slowly warming up to rusty amber, to fiery tiger, before setting for the day’s river of sparkling diamonds.

“Sven...” I called him and my heart choked in my chest.

“Mhm?”

“About yesterday morning” I continued and felt his body tense up, ready to separate from mine “I’m sorry I coped out.”

“Hmm?”

I turned around to face him.

“I should have kissed you. When you were so close.”

He didn’t answer for a long moment and I felt completely stupid. Yup. I was wrong. I had imagined all that. There was nothing there.

“You could have.” He finally spoke and I about felt faint. “You could have, instead of should have.” He corrected me.

I swallowed my fears and my doubts.

I loved the way the wakening light blushed his cheeks of taffy punch and crowned him in an aura of honey butterscotch. And more than anything, I loved the warm glimmer in his silver eyes, that faint smug smile he tried so hard to contain. and the fuzzy peace coated happiness blooming in my heart.

“I was hoping to somehow stumble on you, this morning.” He commented, locking his hands behind my back. “You are not aware of this, I fairly certain you haven’t noticed, but we were at the same restaurant Wednesday evening. You were at that small two seats table by the last window in the back. I was having a business dinner at the other end of the place. You ended up sharing your table with a complete stranger, I believe.”

I stood there shocked.

“Was your business dinner that boring?” I laughed.

“Theo is a good man, but Lord have mercy on all our souls, he cannot shut up once he opens his mouth.”

I flat out burst out laughing and hid my face in his chest.

Hey, Sven, I wanted to kiss you, but you are derailing the situation! And I love your cologne. I took a deep breathe of his scent and tried to not make it look creepy as it actually was. And this is silly. I came here to forget a silly heartbreak, not to develop an equally silly crush on a local.

“I believe you promised me a coffee.”

Yes, indeed, I did.

I quickly toed myself to his height and stole what I naively believed to be a swift inconsequential kiss, already planning the next move in the forefront of my mind, but Sven, the good male protagonist of this improvised romance telenovela or soap opera or what ever they called it here in Norway, sneakily locked me in his arms and demanded more. My cheeks burned but I more than gladly gave in.

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duckbunny · 7 years ago

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FIVE TIMES DASHCON DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY (AND ONE TIME HE DID)

So, due to the Fight Back Fic Auction @fightbackfic and a generous donation to the Trussell Trust (feed the hungry), this happened. It’s Dashcon/Fyre Festival slash. You’re welcome.

You can read it on AO3 if you’d rather.

Persons of a nervous disposition may be reassured that there are no ball pits in the following narrative.

It was three pm on an overheated Tuesday, and Dash just wanted a frappucino. He'd barely made it out of bed this morning, had spent an hour dicking about on his phone without reaching the end of Tumblr or sitting up, and he just wanted a coffee milkshake with a lot of ice and syrup in it, but the barista at the fancy coffee shop was looking at him like he'd asked for a bowl of slugs.

“We don't sell those,” she said, the implied sweetie, this should be obvious ringing clear. “If you're looking for something cold, I can recommend the affogato.”

Dash was already kicking himself. He shouldn't have come in here. He should have known from the atmosphere that it wasn't for him – from the artfully worn wooden tables and the way the menu said 4.5 where any normal place would have put $4.50. “What – what is that?”

“It's vanilla ice cream topped with a shot of espresso.” The barista was still smiling at him, like a particularly unimpressed dragon might smile. He didn't like espresso.

“Um, I'll have, uh, could I just get a latte, please? With two shots of caramel syrup?”

Her smile didn't waver. “I'm afraid we don't stock syrup.”

“Oh. Then just the latte?”

“Coming right up.”

Dash fumbled in his back pocket for the right change. The right change made things go faster and then he could sit down and wait for his face to stop burning. He had a five crumpled up from sitting on it and he tried to smooth it out unobtrusively before the barista came back and he had to hand her a creased bill and coins warm from his body heat. The latte cost twice as much as he expected. He really should have just gone to Starbucks.

He sat down with his coffee. He stood up again. No syrup, okay, but he couldn't drink it plain. There had to be sugar in here somewhere, right? They couldn't only cater to people who liked it bitter? No coffee shop was that purist, right?

There was sugar. It was brown and came in rough craggy lumps. Dash had to walk all the way to the end of the counter to fetch it, past the barista who was wiping down the counter with all-recyclable natural brown paper towels. She stared at him.

She wasn't the only one. The guy in the corner was watching him, must have been watching the whole ordeal, with a grin Dash did not want to like, but which brought out dimples and made his eyes crinkle just a little bit. He was perfectly blond and perfectly turned out, his hair tousled in the way that said both I woke up like this and I spent three hours getting the perfect look. Dash never spent three hours getting the perfect look. He rarely spent three minutes. He kept glancing over at the blond guy while he sipped his still-bitter coffee, and the blond guy kept smirking at him, and Dash thought he would quite like to die.

It was one am on a Saturday, and Dash definitely wanted to die. He had a deadline next week, really shouldn't have come out at all, but the club only had one Gay Night a month and he hadn't managed to get out to one yet, so his friends had nagged him into going with them. They'd since vanished, whether with each other or with hookups he wasn't sure, but either way Dash was stuck propping up the wall of this very dark, very loud place and wishing he had someone to split a cab home with.

“Buy you a drink?”

Dash said, “No, thank you,” automatically, before he clocked who was speaking to him.

“Probably for the best, I don't think they do fraps here, either.”

The man from the coffee shop was leaning on the wall beside him, with a tilt in his hips that made it look stylish and his hair slicked back with gel. His shirt was all black mesh and latex panels and Dash shouldn't be trying to see his nipples but he was. The guy grinned at him. “You're cute. You got a name?”

“Dash. Dashel, technically.”

“I'm Fire. With a y.”

“Wow. Your parents were even worse than mine.”

“Hey,” Fyre said reproachfully, “I like my name. Do you dance, Technically Dashel, or should we just get out of here?”

“I – uh – buh - “ Dash said. “Um?”

Fyre patted him on the arm. “Okay. You got your phone on you?”

“Uh-huh?” Dash handed it over in a daze. Fyre typed something in and showed it to him. Phone number.

“This is me,” Fyre said. “I'm going to go dance. Call me, find me, whatever.”

Dash stayed on the wall for a long time watching Fyre's hips shake, and then he drank a glass of ice water and crossed the dance floor.

It was nine am on a Saturday, and Dash had a headache. That was the first thing he noticed, before he opened his eyes, that somehow he'd got the hangover without any of the drinking beforehand. His hair had wrapped around his face in the night and he peeled it away, grimacing. He was lucky it hadn't tried to strangle him.

There was a noise from the other side of the bed.

Dash froze for a moment, his whole mind going blank. It couldn't be the cat. He hadn't had a cat for the last five years.

He flipped over like a well-greased pancake and stared at Fyre, glowing golden in the morning light. He had one arm tucked behind his head, already posing, and Dash could vividly recall what the rest of him looked like, under the artfully draped sheet.

“Morning,” Fyre said. “Did you sleep well?”

“Oh. Oh. You're… not a dream?”

Fyre smiled. It was slow and rather predatory. Dash would fight a tiger to keep that smile turned on him. A really angry tiger. “I'm real. And you're real, and it's far too early to get up on a Saturday.”

“But we're both awake,” Dash said, and immediately felt very stupid.

They fell asleep again afterwards.

It was seven pm on a Thursday and Dash hadn't heard from Fyre all week, except to set up this date – was date the right word? Was he allowed to use that word? He felt like maybe that word was a bit ambitious, given what Fyre looked like, namely a bronzed Greek god with piercing blue eyes and a devastating smile, and what Dash looked like, namely a particularly scruffy Muppet. He could maybe be the awkward librarian that Fyre flirted with on the way to break hearts and save the world, but he clearly couldn't be the boyfriend.

Anyway, Fyre wasn't exactly late, because he'd said they should meet up to get a drink before dinner and their reservation wasn't until half past, and Dash had a feeling that the smooth thing to do would be to go and sit down at the bar like he owned it and order something in a tone of cool confidence, but the only time Dash had been smooth was as a teenager when he'd stolen his sister's razor and his legs had felt very strange for a week. So instead of that, he was sitting on the plinth of a statue, wishing Fyre would turn up and whisk him inside.

He felt even stupider when Fyre did arrive, and swept confidently into the restaurant expecting Dash to be in there already. He had to scurry in after him and tap him on the arm before he noticed Dash and took off his shades. “There you are,” he said, in a voice as warm as his name. “You look like you could use a drink. Long day?”

Dash made his routine work annoyances sound much worse, just to avoid admitting he'd been nervous. He managed to sound like he had an opinion on his cocktail, so that was something, and Fyre didn't seem to realise that he'd spent his whole lunch break frantically Googling cocktails to find one he might actually like. Coffee and vodka had seemed like a safe bet and he'd said “Espresso martini” on the first attempt.

It was a little like being in a cutscene. Fyre would ask him something and Dash would try to sound friendly or interested or interesting, and out of his mouth would pop a random sentence that didn't at all match the option he’d meant to select. Fyre had something very clear and strong-looking, with ice and lemon and some kind of herb all piled into the glass, and he sipped it much slower than Dash drank his and didn't look confused about where to put his hands. Dash hated him suddenly, for his perfect hair and his smile and his manners. He'd probably had lessons in small talk. Dash said “So, what do your parents do?” and that carried them through to the appetisers.

The gentle jazz piano didn't help at all with the unreality. Dash picked at his goat's cheese tart and wondered aloud if it was really supposed to taste that much like goat, and Fyre laughed and told him he was adorable. Dash let him order after that. It seemed easier. Fyre sent his steak back twice, once for being too cooked, once too rare. Dash could hardly fathom spending that much on a meal in the first place, let alone wasting it. He worked dutifully through his unexciting side salad and didn't mention the prices. Fyre had promised he'd pay. Dash hadn't even had to ask. It would be fine.

Fyre leaned over the table while they were waiting for dessert and took Dash's hand. Dash looked up at his smiling face and tried to find his missing vocal chords.

“I've got an idea,” Fyre said conspiratorially, before Dash could cobble something together about how nice the evening had been. “Just follow my lead, okay?”

He flagged down a waitress, still holding Dash's hand on the table top, and looked up at her through his lashes. “Hi. No, no, everything's fine, thank you, everything's been great. It's just – it's our anniversary.”

Dash sat up straight, his mouth falling open, and Fyre squeezed his hand hard. “So I was just wondering – could you ask the pianist to play something for us? Something romantic? Oh, thank you so much, that's very kind of you. Thank you. Oh, we will, and I hope you have a nice evening as well. Thanks.”

He settled back in his chair and winked at Dash, finally letting his hand go. “We won't be paying for that steak, you wait and see.”

“Oh,” Dash said. He looked over at the pianist, who inclined his shaved head very solemnly and started playing something almost parodically sweet. “That's smart, I guess. You could have warned me.”

“You wouldn't have reacted right if I had. That little shy shocked face was perfect, I wouldn't have missed that for the world.”

“Thanks,” Dash said, and tried to see if their desserts were being brought yet.

The bill had twenty percent knocked off, and Fyre didn't tip.

It was midnight on a Wednesday, and Dash was staring at himself in the mirror. The shadows under his eyes weren't softened a bit by Fyre's bathroom, all steel and white tile. His mouth tasted thick and unpleasant. He should have brought a toothbrush with him. He should have gone home for a change of clothes first.

“I'm going to go home,” he said abruptly.

“What? Baby, come on,” Fyre said, lifting his head up in bed. “Don't just cut and run, give a man some romance.”

Dash wasn't an expert, but he thought romance probably had more reciprocation in it, and not taking him places that made him feel stupid, and not laughing at him when he was just trying to explain about amatonormative microaggressions and how Fyre shouldn't assume he was attracted to men just because they were having sex - “No, I'm just going to go,” he said. “I have work tomorrow.”

“I'll get you a cab.”

“You mean you'll order a cab.”

“That's what I said.”

“What am I supposed to wear? You dragged me all the way out here and I don't even have a shirt for work. I'm going home, Fyre.”

Fyre looked him up and down in exactly the way he wished Fyre wouldn't, because it made him shiver and blush. “It's your call, baby.” Fyre said. “You know you're always welcome right here.”

“Yeah,” Dash said, his mouth suddenly dry. “I'm gonna. I think I'm going to head back.”

“Whatever you say, darling.”

It was five pm on a Tuesday and Fyre had finally texted him. He'd been ignoring Dash all weekend, or maybe Dash had been ignoring him, refusing to be the first one to break the silence. He wasn't going to be the needy one. He wasn't going to apologise.

Dash looked at the text – Your place or mine? Bring a clean shirt, and spent twenty minutes gnawing on his thumbnail and trying to make up his mind.

Fuck off, he sent back, and went to get himself a caramel frap with extra syrup.

#fight back fic auction #dashfyre #fyre festival #dashcon #anthropomorphic personifications

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kapitanwingter · 7 years ago

Text

Chapter 6 - Practice makes perfect

"És tűz! [And fire!]"

The sound of the KwK 42 echoed through the field. Not that anybody noticed it, the Panthers had the same, not to mention the Tigers had a tinsy bit bigger ones.

"Well that one bounced" I noted.

"You said the width of the visible target divided by the stritches it covers times thousand, right?" asked Reiko.

"Correct"

"Then why did it not hit?"

"I guess we estimated the size of the target badly, it's not like they would tell us that because that wouldn't be real training"

"Right"

"Okay...Next!" I yelled to Fusako.

"This thing is heavy...." she said as she slided the next round in the breech and pulled the safety lever.

"So what gun is this anyways?" asked Reiko "And what's our penetration with it?"

"It's a Kampfwagenkanone 42 L/70, it's a 7.5cm gun used on the panthers"

"But wasn't this a Hungarian tank? And what does L/70 mean?"

"Yeah and they planned to put a Hungarian made 80mm Bofors anti-air in her but they decided that the german gun was more powerful and if it fits....and as for L/70 it's the way to measure the lenght of the barrel which in our case it means it's seventy times the diameter of the gun so it's 5.25 meters long"

"I see...also I think I got it right this time...can I?"

"Yeah. Fire!"

I take a peak through the commander's cupola with my binacular.

"Hit confirmed" I said.

"Hell yeah" said Reiko delightfully.

"You two stay here and try to hit the targets further away. Don't forget that they put them out randomly so there is literally no pattern to how far they are and neither are they of the same size though they resemble to different kind of tank frontal armor so you can search up the tank in the range-fingind manual and deduce the distance with the help of that"

"We'll take care of them" she smiled at me.

I smiled back and jumped out of the tank.

Earlier we took the radio out of the tank and brough it to the tents so that Jitsuko can figure out how it works. It's not an easy piece because of the fine-tuning of the signals. I started to read the manual and though it's pretty clear it's obviously from my country because it doesn't work how it's supposed to.

"Any luck?" I asked.

"I managed to get a signal through to Lili earlier but it faded away immediately...I must have set the frequency wrong"

"Have you tried increasing the voltage? The higher it gets though more it draws the better the long range signal could get"

"Right let's see...This is Turul calling Lili, Lili please respond"

We waited for a few seconds.

"This is Lili, I read you, how copy Turul?"

"Banzai!" yelled Jitsuko "Loud and clear Ma'am, we got the radio figured out"

"Great news" she said over the radio "I'll be there in a few minutes, I'm bringing some food for everyone, we'll continue with driving on rough terrain after break"

The radio had a headset so only the operator could hear what they say.

"Copy"

"Nice work Ji" I said.

"You're the commander for a reason" she said smilingly.

I responded and went back to check on the tank.

Everyone was either on the terrain simulator area or at the shooting range. They were training hard though we were still off by one tank as Emese said. She insists on having thirty fight capable vehicles though for the upcoming championship I heard we can only field max twenty. First ten, then fifteen and twenty in the end.

On condition we ever get to that point that is...

"Say" I asked Fusako "Have you seen the Captain?"

"She just left a couple of minutes ago, said she has some important business to attend to back at HQ"

"Ah I see...I guess I'll ask Lili about what we should do next"

Jitsuko told me what she said over the radio, Eimi needed some practice as well. The others seemed to have improved a lot during the day. Let's see how they can perform while the tank is shaking.

We brought the radio from the tents to the tank and screwed it into it's place between Eimi and Jitsuko and wired it to the tank's antenna. After confirming that it was working in order we headed out to the grounds.

The grounds even had some targets as well similar to the shooting range and facing towards the side of the ship as well.

Lili instructed us to go in a circle and on our way back try to hit the targets.

The terrain was rough and we all knew we would need a lot of practice on especially this place but towards the end...well I wouldn't say it was total chaos but Lils instructed us to not to stop and try to shoot like that.

"So uhm...." said Reiko "Two stritches...No! Two and a half....Nevermind it is two...

"I think it's about two meters wide so....uhm....set it to 570 meters and try it" I said "Eimi go a bit slower"

"Roger" she confirmed.

Through the visors I couldn't see much from the cupola so I went outside like I saw on the videos about that brown-haired girl in the brown Tiger the other night. Allegedly people rarely get hit in the matches so I'll take that chance in the future.

"Loading complete" said Fusako.

"Fire!" I said.

We heard a blunt bang the same time the breech slided back and spit the shell casing out.

"Hit confirm...nevermind I got decieved by the dust we missed it by a longshot"

"Damnit" said Reiko.

"Remain calm, it is our first try at this" I said.

We could shoot twice more and at least we hit the target at about two hundred meters.

Things went by like this thorough the afternoon. We did a few dozens of the circle and when the sun was setting we called it a day. We went back to the tents, got off from the tank and layed on the ground like some stranded whales.

We heard the roar of some engine coming closer and closer. It was a Turán I with Emese on top of it.

"Gather 'round girls!" she yelled around the place.

The sensha-dou class went to line up in front of the tank.

"This" she continued "Is our thirtieth tank and it's crew. You might know them everyone"

They got off the tank and I couldn't believe my eyes.

"Meet driver Hoga Miyuu, turret operator Yamada Hatsu and commander Oshima Tokiko"

"It's a pleasure meeting everyone" they said.

They bowed then we did.

"I'm counting on you all to teach us everything you know" said Tokiko "Sensha-dou is one of the essences of our school, it's only natural your leaders would take part in it"

"I'm gonna teach them how to deal with this ironhide tomorrow but now everybody take five and we'll gather in front of the garages. So again: departure in five minutes"

I was about to head back but I suddenly saw a familiar hairstyle coming towards me.

"So you did come, huh" said Kaga.

"I'm not one to back down on my word or give up easily" I replied sarcastically "Girls, this is Misaki Kaga"

"Yeah I'm classmates with Jitsuko" she said.

Ji nodded. I noticed Fusako and Kaga were starring at each other. I was afraid they were sworn enemies...

"Like your hair" said Fusako

"Your's not bad either" replied Kaga in a cold tone.

"Anyway" I interrupted "What do you operate, Kaga?"

"I'm the commander of the other Tiger"

"Lucky.." noted Reiko.

Kaga didn't bother to answer her.

"You should go and fetch your tank" she said "Would be a shame if you broke down midway"

"What do you mean by tha-" said Eimi but I interrupted.

"It's a race then isn't it?" I asked.

"I don't participate in things I would win anyways" said Kaga with a smile.

"We'll see about that" I said.

We went back to our tank and in a minute we were standing behind Lili in the convoy. Suddenly I heard a Tiger's roar from behind me.

"Not bad" said Kaga.

I grined at her.

We all went back in a row to the garages. I think the entire town could hear our engines and I was right after. People gathered in our way next to the road when we got near to the garages and they cheered us on. The kids seemed really happy and enthusiastic.

"Does this happen frequently?" I yelled over to Lili.

"Yeah people in town really approove of sensha-dou" she yelled back.

We arrived back back and everybody started to park their tanks to their respective places so I ordered Eimi to go in reverse to where we found the Tas.

"Na-ah" said Emese "You're going over there"

She pointed at the first garage.

"But that's the one for heavy tanks" I said surprisingly.

"And commanding tanks" she replied "You'll know it later"

" 'Scuse m-"

"C'mon Tami hurry up"

"Öhm...Right!"

We parked next to the wall, opposite side to the HQ in the hangar.

"Finally you're back" said Aoi.

"How are things here?" I asked.

"I went over to the automotive club. I convinced them to give me a couple of maintenance lessons a week. When Cap got back she told me I'll be doing the maintenance for every tank. I was afraid at first but she agreed that every crew will fill out a paper on their mechanical problems"

"Great news! Though she sure put a lot of pressure on you..."

"It's all right" she waved with her hands as she smiled "My parents put a lot of pressure me as well. I think if they find out somebody tasked me with such responsibility they will ease up on me"

"Well I trust you but if you have any problems do ask your commander for help"

Thanks, Tami"

I saw something was going on in the field in fron of the hangars. They were setting up a projector and a whiteboard and some blackboards as well which was placed on a platform.

"Allright girls everyone gather around" yelled Emese to everybody.

She's about to start the de-briefing about our general order of battle with Lili by her side, this will be how we'll train from now on. Though I doubted if it was necessary if for the tournament we can only bring twenty at most.

"I know what all of you are thinking" she started "This won't work in the tournament"

She has some intuition.

"But I think we can only achieve big things if we are organized so everybody is going to train according to the chart I'm about to explain. So right now we have thirty tanks and if we are going to form three-tanked platoons it makes it a total number of ten platoons. One commanding and nine field platoons. The last nine one will be divided into three companies which will be under the command of one of the commander platoon's tanks. We'll have a main force, a reckon and an ambush and auxilary force. Okay let's discuss who will be where. First the commander platoon's three tanks: Hanna [Emese's tank], Kovács [meaning: smith, Lili's tank] and Turul, the 44M Tas so Tamara please come here"

I never liked performing in public yet alone speaking in front of a lot of people so I got very nervous but I convinced myself it will be a lot worse if I don't show I am capable of what Emese is asking. Although the people who started to whisper to each other angrily didn't help me that much.

"Why she?" asked Kaga calmly in the end.

"We all been doing sensha-dou for a few years - perhaps I for the most which is five - but if not with sensha-dou, Tamara did grow up with maintaining, shooting and driving tanks. We do not know her strategic capability but she knows everything about every tank, right?" she said as she slapped my back.

"Yes Ma'am!" I replied instinctively.

"Also let's be honest girls" said Lili "She did crank that old piece of garbage in five minutes"

"Six" I mumbled.

"If anybody's got a word against my hunch I'd very much welcome to listen to it but otherwise anyhow I look at it she is our best choice"

The whisperers looked at their feets irritatetdly or in agreement.

"I will do my best and resign if I make a grave mistake" I said with the best confidence I could force into my voice "I am very grateful to miss Emese and I am looking forward working with you" I added while I bowed.

Emese smiled

"I'm glad to hear" she said "I'm counting on you. Now let's continue and speed things up because I'm sure most of us wants to go home to take at least one shower. So Company one: Platoon 1 will have...

"Yo Mesi" said Lili "No names for the companies?"

"Fine..." sighed Emese "So...Company one...codename "Kálmán": Platoon 1 - Tiger, Panther, Turán 2, Platoon 2 - Zrínyi 75, Toldi 2, Turán 2, Platoon 3 - Panzer IV, Zrínyi 75, Turán 2, this will be our main force under my command so these tanks plus an other tiger. Company 2 let's see..."Buda" will be the reckon force under Lili's command, Platoon 1 - Toldi 1, Toldi 2, Turán 1, Platoon 2 - Panzer IV, Toldi 2, Turán 2, Platoon 3 Zrínyi 75, Zrínyi 105 and a Turán 1. Company 3 a.k.a. "Puli" will have Tamara as the commanding officer with her 44M Tas, Platoon 1 - Panzer IV, Panzer IV, Zrínyi 75, Platoon 2 - Zrínyi 105, Zrínyi 105, Turán 1, Platoon 3 - Zrínyi 105, Panzer IV, Turán 1, they will be our ambush and auxilary force. Objections?"

Some people nodded the others approoved by words.

"Right then, we will decide which crew will go to which company, to everyone: good night and good work today, to the deputy commanders: take ten and come to HQ"

As I was walking towards my tank I saw some people looking jealously and angrily at me. They were going home, not a lot of people stayed to maintain their tanks, they had enough of today.

"If you have a problem discuss it with me" told Kaga to some girls who almost "accidentally" ran into me.

"I don't belong there..." I said.

"Trust your commander" she said "I wanted to be the second deputy - naturally - but you know...I agree with the Captain. Anyways, later, good work today"

She smiled at me and I smiled back.

"Yeah, later"

I said my goodbyes to my crew as well. They were really tired but in a great mood at least. I wasn't in a great mood anymore.

I headed towards the HQ building.

#chapter #chapter6 #girlsundpanzer #girls und panzer #fanfiction #fan fiction #Winged

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